‘Our problem is not population but mismanagement’

The Director, Quality Assurance and Research Development Agency, Nigeria, (QAARDAN), Mrs Theresa Okafor, has identified mismanagement as a major obstacle to the country’s progress.

She spoke at this year’s Quality Assurance workshop organised for school heads, teachers, parents, pupils and stakeholders.

The event, held at the Pan African University, Aja, Lagos, was well attended by pupils from private and public schools in Lagos State, including school owners and other stakeholders.

Mrs Okafor argued that a culture of creativity be more entrenched in the curriculum to train the young ones to become better leaders.

Her words: “Students should not be taught that the problem we are having as a country is population, instead it is mismanagement. We need to check where the problem really lies. Then the curriculum question; what are we doing about it? How much efforts have we made into improving it? The curriculum would teach young ones how to be creative, and more responsible to their society.”

On the essence of the workshop, Okafor said it was to seek pathways towards arriving at a more holistic curriculum.

“We have a National Policy on Education that integrates character education with learning. So we want to see how well this curriculum can collate with that because quality assurance (QA) agencies are also appraising curriculum in the country. The old curriculum is encumbered, some things need to be removed,” she said.

Corroborating Okafor, Lagos State Commissioner for Education, Mrs Olayinka Oladunjoye said character education is a key determinant to development.

Her words: “There is doubt that the quality of educational provisions determine the level of development in a state. Therefore, character education is paramount in the building of a virile 21st century mega city. Education should not be confined to acquisition of certificates alone, it should be made functional.”

Mrs Oladunjoye praised private sectors and voluntary organisations,such as QAARDAN for their contribution in infrastructural development and teacher training.

Director, Curriculum Development Centre, Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), Dr Ismail Junaidu delivered a paper on the topic: Expose on the learning and the character education content in the new Nigerian curriculum.

He said the new basic curriculum courtesy of the Nigerian Education Research and Development Council (NERDC), adding that it addresses moral development at every facet.

His words: “Specifically, at the basic education level, the objectives of education borders on the inculcation of permanent literacy and numeracy and character and moral training among others, while at the senior secondary level, there is emphasis on developing people who can think for themselves, respect the views of others, respect the dignity of labour, appreciate the values under the broad national aims and live as good citizens.”